Electric-signal recorder.



N. H. SUREN.

ELECTRIC SIGNAL RECORDER.

APPLmATIoN FILED MAY 14, 1909.

Patente 0G15. 26, 1909.

I/Znesses i Email( UNITED sTATEs PATENT oEErcE.

NATHAN H. SUREN,

NEW YORK.

ELECTRIC-SIGNAL' RECORDER. i

0F NEEDHAM, MASSACHUSETTS, ASSIGNOR TO THE GAMEWELL FIRE-ALARM TELEGRAPH COMPANY, 0F NEW YORK,

N.` Y., A CORPORATION 0F Pantedoef. 2c, 1909.

Application filed May 14, 1909. Serial No. 495,963.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, NATHAN H. SUREm-of Needham, county of Norfolk, State of Massachusetts, have invented an Improvement in Electric-Signal Recorders, of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to electric-signal recorders for recording fire-alarm, police and other signals on a recording-tape.

The invention has for its object to construct a recorder including means for cutting slots of varying length in the recording-tape. Also to construct a recorder including a marker adapted to cut slots of varying length in the recording-tape-by means of a continuous cutting action, as for instance, by a shearing action. Also to construct a recorder including a slotting-tool adapted to slot the recording-tape, and means to operate said tool and hold it in engagement with the tape for diHerent lengths of time, whereby slots o fyarying lengths maybe produced `in said tape. Also to construct a recorder inclosing means for cutting slots of varying lengths in the recording-tape and forming tongues. Also to construct a recorder including a inarker adapted to slot the recording-tape to form a tongue and to sever the tongue corder including a marker 4.adapted to cut slots in the recording-tape and form suc-- cessive tongues and'respectively sever them to produce slots of varying length. Also to construct a recorder with a movable-carrier and a segmental slotting-tool pivoted thereto, and means to operate said carrier to force `the slotting-tool through the recording-tape tween, which are successively apertured to form open slots in the tape.

The invention also has for its'objectto construct a recorder in which the recordingtape is adapted --to be moved at a uniform speed during the recording of a signal, havning of its been slotted by a thus formed. Also to construct a remarker for the recording-tape.

' will act to. depress ing in combination, movable, to intersect the path of movement of the tape and to effect penetration thereof by its leading edge which is also movable in unison with the tape after such penetration to cause successive portions thereof to engage and cut a slot in said tape, and means to determine the duration of engagement of the .slotter with the tape to thereby regulate the length of the slot.

Figure l is a side elevation of a suflicient portion of a recorder to illustrate my invention, the parts being in their normal positions. Fig. 2 is a detail of the slotting-tool'- in engagement with the tape at the beginmovement. Fig. 3 is a detail of the slotting-tool in engagement with the tape view of the slotti'IIg-to'ol and carrier therefor and grooved tape-support. `Fig. 5 is a plan view showing a plurality of s lotting tools Figs. 6, 7, 8 and 9 are details of modified forms of slotting-tools. Fig. 10 is a detail of a portion of the recording-tape which has lotting-tool embodying this invention.

The recorder herein shown for the purpose ofy illustrating my invention is of the multiple-pen variety, it being arranged with four circuits, other number of circuits or for a single circuit. The receiving electro-magnet a, of any one of the circuits, see Fig. 1, is supported by a stand a. Its armature a2 is pivoted at a3, and has an arm at, adjustably or otherwise connected by a link a5 with the upper end of an actuating-lever b. Said actuatinglever is pivoted at b', and extends downward, and its lower end is arranged to engage a carrier 0l, it being preferably provided 'at its extremity with a roll b2 which engages the carrier,

to bear at' its extremity a. slotting-tool or Said arm d has an inclined portion orcam d2, engaged by the actuating-lever, so that when said actuating-lever is moved on its pivot it restored to its normal or elevated position by a spring da when the actuating-levert resumes its normal position. The actuatinglever also has at itslow'er end an l'extension The carrier d, is here` shown, as an armpivoted at al, and adaptedv a slotter, intermittingly" v at the end of itsmovement. Fig. 4 is an end but it may be arranged for any which is the arm d. Said arm d is Patent #458,042 file the tape a,

b3, which is adapted to operate to release a train, not shown, for moving forward the recording-tape, said train and the mechanism therefor being of any well known or suitable construction, as for instance,I may em loy the train represented in the recorder s own in my a plication for Letters Otober 16, 1908. Said train is adapted to rotate the lower feed-wheel g for the tape, with which cooperates an upper feed-wheel g, to move the tape positively and at a uniform speed. The slotting-member or toolherein also termed the marker, for slotting the recordingtape, is here shownas pivoted to the extremity of the arm d and is held by said arm above the path of movement of the recording-tape, see Fig. 1. Depression of the arm d acts to move the slotter into engagement with the tape, to puncture and slot the same, and as such depression is due to the operation of the armature of the electro-magnet a, the length of time thel slotter remains in engagement with the ta e will be dependent upon the duration oi) the period during which said electro-magnet lis continuously energized. If the armature is vibrated quickly the slotter will be operatedy to cut short slots in the tape, ventional dots of a signal, and if the vibrations of said armature are of long duration, then the slotter will be operated to cut long slots, representing the conventional dashes Vof a signal.

The slotter here shown in Figs. l to 6, is segmental in shape, and made as a thin metal plate, its body c being pivoted at its upper corner, at c', to the arm d, and said body having a stop-pin c2l normally held against the arm by means of a light spring c3, attached at one end to the arm and at the other end to the pivot-shaft of the slotter. The lower corner of the slotter is prolonged to form a pointed penetrating tooth c4, and the rear or lower edge c5 of the body is made as a circular arc extendingk from the tooth c4 to the upper edge and struck from the pivot c, as a center, and of such radius that when the'armature is attracted the curved edge c5 will continuously intersect and pass across the plane of the recording-tape, if the slotter is swung on its pivot c until it reaches the end of its curved edge. The segmental slotter in addition to having the tooth c, which serves as an initial'cutting-tooth, also has other like cutting-teeth, herein shown as c", c7, es. The cutting-tooth 08 is arranged a-t the extreme rear end of the curved edge of the segment and the cutting-teeth o and c7 are arranged at intervals between said teeth c4 and cs.- Beneath the slotter a support for is arranged, here shown as a rotatable roll -e having an annular groove e therein, made slightly wider than the transrepresenting the con-v the edge of the slotter the tongue,

verse thickness of the cutting-teeth and of the plate c bearing said teeth, and of such depth that the teeth will clear the bottom of the groove when the slotter is in its lowermost position. When said slotter enters the groove in said roll the tape is cut by it with a continuous shearing action, the edges of the slotter coperating with the sides of the groove in the supporting-roll for the accomplishment of thisresult. vWhen a signal is received the recording-train moves forward the recording-tape at a uniform speed, and the carrier d is moved to move the slottingmember toward and into engagement with the tape, the initial cutting-tooth penetrating the tape and passing into the groove in the supporting-roll e, see Fig. 2. It will be seen that the tip of the initial tooth at such time is a slight distance behind or at the right of the center of the grooved roller. When the tooth penetrates the tape a short slot or perforation is made, and if the signal impulse is short the magnet is immediately denergized and the slotting-member is immediately `returned to normal, the cuttingtooth being Withdrawn entirely from the tape. When the initial tooth penetrates the tape the feeding-movement of the tape, acting upon the rear edge of said tooth and the lower edge of the slotter causes the slotterl to swing on its pivot, moving'in unison to the tape. With a short signal impulse the movement of the slotter in unison with the tape and relative to its carrier is very short, but during the time the tooth penetrates the tape which has also crossed theplane of the tape acts to cut a short piece or `tongue from the strip, the edge of the slotter acting in conjunction With the sides p of the groove -in, the supporting-roll to make twoparallel shear cuts in the tape extending from the point of penetration rearward to the point at which the slotter .disengages the tape. v f

If the slotter is provided with a cuttingtooth o then said tooth will also penetrate the recording-tape atv the endfof the short signal-impulse formed,.but if the slotter is devoid .of said tooth, as shown in Fig. 6, the tongue thus formed will not be severed. Or, if the slotter should be Withdrawn from the tape before the tooth c6 arrives in position to sever then said tongue Will not be severed from the tape. The particular advantage gained by not severing the tongues from the tape is that after the4 tape has passed between the feed-wheels gV and g and said tongues thereby turned backward on the tape and the tape has been detached from the recorder they will serve to indicate the correct. direction for reading the signal. In some instances, however, this advantage is not deemed to be of suiicient importance to plate having one or slot the recording-tape. to form a tongue an warrant leaving the tongues on the tape, and hence they are severed therefrom. My invention, however, is desi ed to comprehend construction by which either result may be accomplished. l

If the signal-impulse is of long duration the angular movement on the slotter relative to its carrier will be corres ondingly greater, and a greater portion o the edge of the slotter will move across the plane 'of the tape, the latter being acted upon -by successive parts of said edge, so that a long slot will be out in the tape, and in 4such case'the cutting-teeth c, c7, es, will penetrate the tape and 'will act successively to sever the tongues previously formed. The length of the signal-impulse will determine the lengthl .severing the tongues of the slot and consequently determine which cutting-tooth will act as the inal cuttingtooth. For short slot-s the second cuttingtooth c will be the final cutting-tooth, for longer slots the third cutting-tooth c7 will be the final cutting-tooth, and so on. The small pieces reinoved from the tape by means of a slotting-tool may cling to the grooved supporting-roll, and to clear said roll of said pieces a linger f .is provided, theend of which extends into the groovef the roll, see Fig. 1, and preferably bottoms therein, and acts to divert the smallerV pieces, causing them to fall away from the supporting-roll. The initial cutting-tooth o4 on the segmentalplate may be omitted, see Fig. 9, and the other cutting teeth employed, and in such case the tongue or tongues will be produced and severed.

The cutting-teeth may be entirely omitted, and still slots of varying length formed in the recording-tape by a continuous cutting action, as represented in Fig. 7, wherein it will be seen that a circular slotting-disk is shown, adapted to enter the groove in the roll e. Furthermore, instead of making the slotting-member or marker as a segmental more cutting-teeth on its edge, it may be made as a circular-disk j, see Fig. 8, having a large number of cuttingteeth on its edge. By means of said disk a slot will be continuously formed in the tape as long as the disk is held in engagement with it. Various other changes and modifi'i cations and details of vconstruction and arrangement may be made by those skilled in lrecording tape Aoperate said marker,

sever the tongues thus the art without departing from the spirit and scope of my invention, as set the claims -annexed hereto.

Having thus described my I claim as new and ters Patent iss- 1. A recorder having a marker invention, what desire to secure by Letadapted to having means for severing the tongue thus formed, substantially as described.'

2. A recorder having a marker adapted to cut slots of varying lengths in the recordingtape-to form tongues and having means for thus v formed, substantially as described.

, 3. A recorder including a marker adapted to slot the recording-tape to form a tongue and to sever the tongue means to operate said marker, substantially as described. y

4. A recorder including a shearing marker adapted to slot the recording-tape to form a tongue and to sever the tongue thus formed, and means to operate tially as described.

5. A recorder including a pivoted marker adapted to cut slots in the recording-tape to forni al tongue and to sever the tongue thus formed, and means to operate said marker, substantially as described.

6. A recorder including a marker adapted to form slots in the recording-tape by means thus formed, and y of a continuous cutting'actionand thereby form tongues and to sever the tongues thus formed, and means to operate said marker, substantially as described. 7 A recorder including a marker adapted to cut slots of varying lengths in the recording-tape by means of a continuous cutting 'action and' form tongues, and to sever the tongues thus formed, and said marker, substantially as described. r

8. A recorder including a shearing marker adapted to cut slots of varying length in the byv means of a continuous shearing sactlon and Jform tongues and to sever the tongues thus formed and means to substantially as described.

9. A recorder including a pivoted marker adapted to cut slots in the recordin-g-tape of varying length and form tongues and to sever the tongues operate said marker, scribed.

10. A recorder including a marker adapted to cut along slot in the recording-tape and form a plurality o tongues, and to Vformed, and means to operate said marker, scribed.

11. A- recorder including .a slotting-topl means to operate thus formed, and means to substantially as deadapted tol cut slots in the recording-tape havingan initial cutting-tooth and a inal cutting-tooth, substantially as described.

12. A .recorder including adapted to-cut slots in the recording-tape 'and having a lurality of cutting-teeth, substantially as escribed.4

13.` A recorder including a slotting-tool' adapted to cut slotsin the recording-tape having an initialcutting-toothv and a iinal cutting-tooth and 'one -or more intermediate cutting teeth, substantially 'as described.

14. A recorder 'including a. shearing a I slotting-tool vcutting-teeth thereon,

a curved shearing portion of transversely arranged substantially as demarker having and a plurality between, substantially as described.

16. A Irecorder including a pivoted segmental .marker having an initial cuttingtooth'and a final cutting-toeth, substantially as described.

17. A recorder including a pivoted segmental marker having an initial cuttingtooth, final cutting-teeth, and one `0r more scribed.

cutting-teeth therebetween, substantially as described.

18. A v recorder including a shearing marker adapted to form slots in the recording-tape, a grooved supporting-roll with which it coperates, and means, as a inger, for, clearing the supporting-roll of the pieces removed from the tape, substantially as de- In testimony whereof, I have signed my name to this specification, in the presence of two subscribing Witnesses.

NATHAN H. SUREN. Witnesses B. J. Noms,y vH. B. DAVIS. 

